Prasannkumar 
Is TikTok's US e-commerce plans big? These job listings may give clues
Is TikTok’s US e-commerce plans big? These job listings may give clues
TikTok will operate its own US warehouses and use the same packing and shipping methods as Amazon and Walmart.
TikTok seems to be expanding its e-commerce efforts with plans to open its warehouses in the United States. These are the same packing and shipping facilities that are more closely associated with Amazon and Walmart than the social media platform known for its addictive short videos.
TikTok posted several job listings on LinkedIn in the last two weeks looking for people to help develop and grow its “Fulfillment By TikTok Shop” US site to support sellers who use the app. The listings indicate that TikTok will offer warehousing and delivery options for sellers.
A spokesperson for TikTok declined to comment on the company’s plans for e-commerce in the US.
The US job listings provide a glimpse into the potential expansion of e-commerce in America. TikTok states that it is seeking a candidate who can manage a return program, plan how inventory will be moved from one warehouse to the next, and help develop its fulfillment services in the US.
Another listing for a Seattle position refers to a global team of e-commerce professionals and a team member responsible for building a global warehouse network. This indicates that the company’s plans could be even larger.
The company stated that the e-commerce market has experienced tremendous growth over the past few years. It is now a highly contested space among leading Internet companies. This means its future growth cannot be underestimated.” We believe TikTok, with millions of users around the world, is the ideal platform to offer a new and improved e-commerce experience for our users.
According to Insider Intelligence, the US market for social commerce is $37bn. It is led by Meta, which has Facebook and Instagram. TikTok’s Beijing-based owner, ByteDance has a flourishing social media marketplace on Douyin. It is its twin app for China, Douyin.
TikTok spokeswoman said that the company’s goal is to “provide merchants with a variety of product features, and delivery options”, in countries where it has e-commerce programs such as Southeast Asia or the United Kingdom.
Insider Intelligence predicts that 23.7 million Americans will make at least one purchase via TikTok in the coming year. This can be done by using affiliate links or making a transaction directly on the platform.
Some of these sales are already having an impact. It has been said that communities such as #BookTok in TikTok dedicated to literature and reading have contributed to a rise in sales of romance books printed this year.
TikTok announced last August that it would partner with Shopify, a Canadian e-commerce firm, to make it easier for users to purchase items from the app. Its entertaining, bite-sized clips are delivered by an algorithm that seems to know what users want before they do.
These results are hard to ignore. Meta saw its first-ever revenue decline in July due to TikTok’s competition. YouTube recently announced that it will allow creators of short-form videos to be eligible for its revenue-sharing program. YouTube previously only allowed revenue sharing with longer videos.
E-commerce, when compared to digital advertising is a small source of revenue for Meta. It will be for TikTok shortly. The TikTok executives will likely be looking to expand the company’s revenue streams beyond advertising — which is dominated by Alphabet and Meta in the US.
GlobalData Retail’s managing director Neil Saunders said that TikTok has grown in reach and influence, making it a strong force in sales and advertising. The company plans to expand its capability by adding warehouses and other facilities, which would allow it to provide a full service.
Saunders stated that this would provide additional revenue streams and improve the customer experience. However, a serious venture into warehousing will be costly and TikTok will face established competitors like Amazon and Walmart.
Saunders stated that TikTok is popular and has a large customer base so this makes sense. “If TikTok continues to grow in popularity, it could be a threat to incumbents and prove to be a disruptive force.
“It’s idiotic,” said Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter. They have no chance of competing, and it is a complete waste of money and time.”
Prasannkumar is a passionate digital marketer and devoted team leader. He loves trying out and sharing the latest knowledge about industry trends, market growth, and keyword analysis with new google and other search engines algorithm. He effectively knows how content feeds into different subsets of the marketing plan and grasps how to develop and share the content assets on the right channels.
